Cerfart History, Family Crest & Coats of Arms

Origins Available:
England
Ireland

The name Cerfart belongs to the early history of Britain, it's origins lie with the Anglo-Saxons. It is a product of their having lived in a valley or at the foot of a hill. Cerfart is a topographic surname, which was given to a person who resided near a physical feature such as a hill, stream, church, or type of tree. Habitation names form the other broad category of surnames that were derived from place-names. They were derived from pre-existing names for towns, villages, parishes, or farmsteads. Other local names are derived from the names of houses, manors, estates, regions, and entire counties.

Early Origins of the Cerfart family

The surname Cerfart was first found in Yorkshire where Ricardus de Kerfforth was listed in the Yorkshire Poll Tax Rolls of 1379. A very rare name, we must look to 1572 to find the next record, that of Margarette Kyrfote, of Bolhngton who appears in the Reg. Prestbury, Cheshire at that time. A few years later, John Kirfoote, or Kyerfoote, Cheshire appears in the Register of the University of Oxford in 1583. 1

Early History of the Cerfart family

This web page shows only a small excerpt of our Cerfart research. Another 101 words (7 lines of text) covering the years 1379, 1661, 1664, 1688 and 1741 are included under the topic Early Cerfart History in all our PDF Extended History products and printed products wherever possible.

Cerfart Spelling Variations

Until the dictionary, an invention of only the last few hundred years, the English language lacked any comprehensive system of spelling rules. Consequently, spelling variations in names are frequently found in early Anglo-Saxon and later Anglo-Norman documents. One person's name was often spelled several different ways over a lifetime. The recorded variations of Cerfart include Kerfoot, Kerford, Kerfont, Kerfut, Kerriford and many more.

Early Notables of the Cerfart family

More information is included under the topic Early Cerfart Notables in all our PDF Extended History products and printed products wherever possible.

Migration of the Cerfart family to Ireland

Some of the Cerfart family moved to Ireland, but this topic is not covered in this excerpt. More information about their life in Ireland is included in all our PDF Extended History products and printed products wherever possible.

Migration of the Cerfart family

Thousands of English families boarded ships sailing to the New World in the hope of escaping the unrest found in England at this time. Although the search for opportunity and freedom from persecution abroad took the lives of many because of the cramped conditions and unsanitary nature of the vessels, the opportunity perceived in the growing colonies of North America beckoned. Many of the settlers who survived the journey went on to make important contributions to the transplanted cultures of their adopted countries. The Cerfart were among these contributors, for they have been located in early North American records: Thomas Kerfitt, who settled in Virginia in 1624; and Elizabeth Kerfoote, who sailed to Virginia in 1637.

Citations +

Bardsley, C.W, A Dictionary of English and Welsh Surnames: With Special American Instances. Wiltshire: Heraldry Today, 1901. Print. (ISBN 0-900455-44-6)